Thomas Partey saw history repeat itself in Arsenal's 3-0 defeat by Crystal Palace on Monday night.
The Ghana international suffered an injury in the build-up to Palace's third at Selhurst Park, which prevented him from chasing down a loose ball he failed to control.
Partey opted against going to the ground as the ball found its way into the path of Wilfried Zaha. The Palace star made full use of his opportunity to run into the Gunners box with three players tailing him. Eventually, Martin Odegaard swept the forward's leg away from under him, conceding a penalty in the process.
Zaha converted the spot-kick, putting the result beyond doubt, with the injured Partey making way for Albert Sambi Lokonga just a minute later. Arsenal continued to press for a consolation, but it simply wasn't their day.
This isn't the first time Partey has suffered an injury that has directly led to Arsenal conceding a goal. Back in December 2020, the midfielder was pushed back onto the pitch by Arteta when he hobbled off moments before Tottenham scored against their rivals.
Partey had been out of action for quite some time ahead of the North London derby and was rushed back into the fray - a decision that backfired on both the midfielder and Arsenal, who were beaten 2-0.
This latest set-back will test Arteta's patience further given his ruthless nature as Arsenal boss. The Spaniard has shown on countless occasions since taking the reins in north London that he has no problems ousting players letting the team down - even if they are not entirely to blame, as is the case this time.
Partey cannot be blamed for picking up an injury, but Arteta will be disappointed the midfielder didn't drop to the ground and attempt to stop play.
Arteta said following the defeat: "From the beginning, we were not at the races. When you come here you have to compete. You have to win duels and second balls and be aggressive and we were none of those and on top of that we were really poor on the ball."
